Picture-building game.



L. LEMASSENA. PICTURE BUILDING GAME.

APPLICATION'FILED DEC. l0. 1914.

hm fifim Patented June 22, 1915.

5 SHEETSSHEET 1.

WITNESSES:

INVENTOR lllz g wasseflw) j a/fiJm ATTORNEYS L. LEMASSENA. PICTURE BUILDING GAME. APPLICATION FILED DEC. I0. 1914.

IN VENTOR Patented June 22, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2 zZZz'miyLe L. LEMASSENA.

PICTURE BUILDING GAME.

APPLICATION men one. 10. 1914.

Patented June 22, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

mmam WITNESSES: 1 05. MM

R. B E W m MMWMA 4/ m my M M L. LEMASSENA.

PICTURE BUILDING GAME.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 10, 1914.

I Patented June 22, 1915.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4- INVENTOR WITNESSES:

ATTORNEYS L. LEIVIASSENA.

PICTURE BUILDING GAME. APPLICATION FILED Inc. 10, 1914.

INVENTOR W W %@n a A W e m M l b ll as Al @FlFF.

rlnmmssrmag or im wania. NEW-"Jensen PICTURE-BUILDING GAME.

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Specification-of Letters Patent, Pwtmzbeflflumg 22, 1915.;

Application area neeemberio, 1914. sriaiirtz-svsgsac;

To all whom itm'ay concern- Be it known that I, LILBIAN' LEMASSENA,

acitizen-ofthe United-States, residing at Newark, irrthe. countyof Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain-new rangement of devices adapted to provide apicture building-game The present invention has for itsprincipal object to provide a-*nov'el picture building'game comprising a suitable combined background and foreground together with a variety of separate ordetached picture elements adapted to be applied to the combined background and foreground either singly or in desiredgroupedrelation to thereby complete a picture, said combined background and foreground bein provided with a series 'ofposit-ionlines'which serve as a guide to the use'rof the game inapplying the detached picture elements to the background and foreground, and which ahswer the applicationof such" picture ele ments in proper'perspective relation to the background and foreground. The said picture elements aremade' in different si'zes'so that the same have difi'erent perspective values, and each picture element is marked to correspond with or'id'entifyit withthe particular position line on the combined background-and foreground withwhich it is to be used. The-proper or corresponding picture elements may be arranged on their respective position linesin any desired number or in any desired grouped relation, and may be mo'ved up'on'orin relation to the background andforeground in any desired relation thereto, so long asits proper rela tion' to its corresponding position line is maintained; consequently it will be apparent that-a great variety of'pic-ture's may be 'built or formed, and the picture" elements are always maintained' in proper perspec tive relation to the backgroundand fore+ ground notwithstanding the various groupings and combinations obtainable.

Other objects of the present invention, not

at this time more particularly enumerated,

will be clearly understood from the follow- 1 ii'g detailed descriptionof the said inven ion;

The said invention consists, primarily, in the novel picture buildinggame apparatus hereinafter set forth; and, furthermore, the lnventlon consists in theseveral'novel arrangements and combinations of the various parts of the same, as wellasin the de tails of'the constructionpf said p'a-rts, all

of which will'be' merc fully described in the followingspecilication, and then finally'enr bodied in the claim whichis appended to and-- which forms an essential part of said specification.

The invention is'clea-rly' illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1- is'a complete view of a flat or horizontal-combined background and foreground provided with the'p'osition lines, and

showing a group of detached picture elements arranged therewith? to form a comp'leted orb'uilt picture. Figs. 2, 3, Land 5 are views of variously sized detached picture element adapted to be applied to and grouped in any desired group relation upon said background and foreground. Figs. 2 3 4 and5, are respectively back views of the variouslysized detached picture elements shown in Figs. 2, 5,4: and 5, the same showingmeans for identifying-the same for use upon corresponding position lines of the background andforegroun'd. Fig. '6 is a perspectiveview of a: slightly modified form of combined background and foreground, the-said background being disposed in=vertical relationto the horizontal f0reground, a'nd tl ie' detached picture elements arranged in proper relation to their correspo'ndi-ngposition lines and in vertical. relationto theh o'rizontal foreground. Fig. 7 is a detached View" of asupporting rod for aerial' pictureelbments the same beingused tosupport such'pict'ure elements in proper relation tothe vertical background and horidiagramatic view illustrating the principles upon which the picture building game is based, and showing how the sizes of the various detached picture elements are obtained.

Similar characters of reference are employed in all of the hereinabove described views, to indicate corresponding parts.

Referring now to the said drawings, the reference character 1 indicates a flat sheet of cardboard or other desirable material, upon the face of which is illustrated a background portion 2 and at its lower end a foreground portion 3. Inscribed upon said foreground and background are a series of properly predetermined position linesaa, bb, cc, dd, and ee, which serve as guides indicating the proper perspective positions for detached picture elements in placing upon and moving upon said background and foreground the said detached picture elements.

The reference character (1 indicates a proper sized detached picture element to be applied to the background and foreground in proper perspective relation thereto by positioning the same anywhere upon its corresponding position line wa.

The reference character 6 indicates a proper sized detached picture element to be applied to the background and foreground in proper perspective relation thereto by positioning the same anywhere upon its corresponding position line bb.

The reference character 0 indicates a proper sized detached picture element to be applied to the background and foreground in proper perspective relation thereto by po-. sitioning the same anywhere upon its corresponding position line 0c.

The reference character 6 indicates a proper sized detached picture element to be applied to the background and foreground in proper perspective relation thereto by positioning the same anywhere upon its corresponding position line ce.

As shown in Figs. 2 3, 4 and 5 a marked tag t'is pasted or otherwise secured upon the back of each picture element to indicate with which position line the same maybe properly used, thus identifying by a corresponding markiproperly sized detached picture elements for use on or in connection with the respective position lines marked aa, bb, cc, ee, etc., as already above set forth. When the picture elements are printed the tag t may be formed as extending from the edge thereof, so that the identifying mark of the same may be printed at the same time as the picture face, subsequently such tag 27 is cut off and secured to the back of the picture element as shown. It will be apparent that when any of the said detached picture elements are laid fiat upon the combined foreground and background in any position upon their corresponding position line they will immediately fit into the picture in their proper perspective relation thereto, at the same time a wide scope of combined relation and grouping of any desired number of such detached picture elements is obtainable, whereby the picture can be made to express different subjects and episodes in various ways according to the exercise of the imaginative ingenuity of-the user of the game. For example, as illustrated in the drawings, the background represents the interior of a circus tent, the foreground the ring or performers stage, and the detached picture elements represent the performers. It will, of course, be clear that a great variety of performers, animals, clowns, etc., may be represented by the detached picture elements, and that the same may be grouped upon the background and foreground so as to represent a great variety of circus acts and episodes. The detached picture elements may be furnished in sets, each set representing some circus feature, and the separate figures of each set may be of different sizes to provide different perspective values when grouped together upon the background and foreground in proper relation to their corresponding position lines. It will also be seen that the relation of the picture elements, as between themselves, may be changed and changed again by moving the same anywhere upon their respective position lines, while always maintaining the same in correct perspective value or relation to the background and foreground.

While I have used the circus subject as illustrative of the principles of my present invention, it will nevertheless be clearly evident, that the principles of my invention may be applied to a wide variety of subjects, and the picture subject of the background and foreground together with detached picture elements for application thereto, may illustrate any subject desired by the desi er or manufacturer.

eferring now 'to Fig. 6 of the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated therein a slightly modified construction of my novel picture building game, still embodying, however, the principles of my present invention. In this modified construction I provide a flat sheet 4 of cardboard, or any other suitable material, upon the face of which is illustrated a background portion 5 and at its lower end a foreground portion 6. In this modification the background portion 5 is bent upward to erect the same in a vertical plane, while the foreground portion 6 is maintained in a horizontal plane. The position lines a-a, bb, and c-c, are provided upon the foreground portion 6, and the detached picture elements a, b, 0, etc., corresponding to the position lines are used and grouped on their proper position lines, so

as to provide the desired finished effectin sition. Of course as inthe main or flat construction of my invention above described, so in thiszmodified.construction the positionlines determine the correct perspective position of the picture-elements with relation to the b'achground. In this modified construction'theaerial picture elements may be supported by means of the rod 8 which pierces through the background far enough to position the aerial figure in the vertical plane of its proper or corresponding position line, as will be apparent from an inspectionof Fig. 6 of the drawings. The said rod 8 has .the graduations or marks 9 thereon corresponding'to and lying inthe vertical plane of the position lines of said. foreground.

Referring now to Fig. 9 of the drawings the diagram A shows the combined background and foreground with the position lines, as printed for flat use, and the diagram B shows the same as printed for combined horizontal and vertical use. When the latter use of the background and foreground is contemplated, the background is printed. slightly above the foreground, leaving a blank-space S, thus permitting the use of the same printing plates. The background is then bent upward on the top line or position line L-03 of the foreground, with the result that the background is so related to the foreground that the-loss in perspective by the fore-shortened view of the foreground is corrected, and the background properly positioned so that when the detached picture elements are erected upon the foreground and associated with. their corresponding position lines, the-same bear the same perspective relationto the back ground that they do in the horizontal or flat use ithe-game, and-the only difi'erence being that the picture is presented in vertical plane instead of horizontal plane. In order, therefore, to cover the blank-space S, I provide the insert-strip 10, the color scheme of which corresponds to the background scheme and merges therein.

Referring now to Fig. 10 of the accompanying drawings, 1 have shown a diagram which is illustrative of the principles upon which the present invention is based. In the said diagram the line A-B is a base line, and is equivalent to the bottom of the picture background and foreground in my ,novel ame in which nothing is visible be:- ',=.-low said base-line or picture bottom' line.

The line EE represents the level of the observers or players eyes, and is also in the horizontal plane of the horizon, which in perspective is always opposite or in line with the level of the observers eyes. The line h-X is a position line such as is inscribed upon the picturebackground and foreground as a guide for the application of the detached picture elements thereto, this position line A'X being below the level of the observers eye and. consequently below the horizon. Ai -X is a similar position line above the level of the observers eyes and the horizon and of the same distance therefrom as is the line 'AX.

New in measuring the height of any fig ure within the observers view perspectivoly, the distance between the base-line AB vertically to the level of the observers eyes E--E is averaged for perspective purposes at five feet,.thisbeing thestandard of measurement,-hence the vertical line AE in the diagram represents an actual heightof live feet, (the scale of the diagram being threefourthsof an inch-tothe foot). The vertical line AD represents a figure having .an actual height of four feet, if thesame was positioned beside :the observer on the base line A.-'B. The oblique line A-P is a measuring line starting from the base line A B, at the foot of the four feet figure represented by the line AD, to a point opposite to and on ailevelwith the observers eyes, or in other words on the horizon, since the latter is always opposite the level of the observers eyes. The oblique line DP is a similar measuring line starting from-the top of the four foot figure, represented by the line AfiD, and extending to a point oppo-' site to and on a level withthe observers eyes, or in other words on the horizon. These measuring lines indicate two parallels extending fromthewobserver to the horizon,

but, as is well understood, when viewedpen spectiively and as they recede from the observer they visually or apparentlyimeet at a point on the horizon-ona level with the observerseyes- It is a well known axiom of the rules of perspective that parallels between two par- :alrlels are equal, as, for example, the rungs of a ladder directly vertical to the observer the foreground position indicated by the line AX. It will be seen that said line Z is a line vertically parallel to the line AD and represents a figure viewed in perspective or receded from the base line and the observer. While the line AD indicates a figure of four feet actual hei ht, the line Z (a 0l equals a figure 0 four feet in height occupying the perspective position of the position line A- Without repeating the above description it will be understood that in the diagram the line JF represents a figure of four actual feet in height, the lines J P represent similar measuring lines or perspective parallels, and the line Z extending therebetween indicates the height of such a four foot figure occupying the perspective position of the position line- A X which is above the level of the observers eyes instead of below, but at the same perspective distance from the observer as the position line A-X, therefore directly above A-X. This position linevA X it willbe seen, would determine the position of aerial figures in the vertical lane of the perspective-or position line A%.

As indicated by the parallel horizontal lines connecting the tops of the figures or vertical lines Z with the vertical parallels Z of the same height erected on the respective position lines A-X and A it will be understood that if the figure represented by the line Z is moved horizontally anywhere upon either position line A-X or A* 2 it will appear of the same size whether to the right or left of the observers position, or below the level of the observers eyes, as when on the line AX, or above the level of the observers eyes, as when on the line The above description of said diagram will explain the use of the position lines as shown and inscribed upon the picture background and fore-ground of my novel picture building game, and will explain why the detached picture elements are necessarily identified for use on given position lines representing diflerent perspective positions or values, and will further explain why a detached picture element identified for use on a given position line may be placed anywhere upon said line and will always when associated with said line fit into the picture background and foreground in its proper perspective relation thereto, so that a picture while it may be varied as to the position of the detached parts to work out different combinations of completed pictures, yet each completed picture will represent all parts so combined in proper perspective relative to each other.

I am aware that some changes may be made in the arrangements and combinations of the several devices and parts of my present invention Without departin from the scope-of the same as described in the foregoing specification, and as defined in the claim appended thereto. Hence, I do not limit my invention to the exact arrangements and combinations of the various de 'vices and parts as herein set forth, and as and be thereby retained in proper perspective relation to said picture background.

In testimony, that I claim the invention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 5th day of December, 1914.

LILLIAN LEMASSENA. 

